A known vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is provided with a partition plate in an air-conditioner case to partition the air channel into a plurality of channels so that the temperature of the air channels can be adjusted independently. This vehicle air-conditioning apparatus is configured to blow temperature-adjusted air independently, for example, to the driver seat and the passenger seat of the vehicle. This is generally configured such that an air channel downstream of an evaporator disposed in the air-conditioner case is partitioned into two left and right channels by a partition plate, and each of the air channels accommodates a heater core that heats the air, a bypass channel that bypasses the heater core, and an air-mixing damper that adjusts the ratio between the amount of air that circulates through the heater core and the amount of air that circulates through the bypass channel, wherein the degrees of the openings of the air-mixing dampers are independently adjusted so that the temperatures of air to be blown to the driver seat and the passenger seat can be independently adjusted.
In such a so-called left-and-right-independent-temperature-adjusting vehicle air-conditioning apparatus, air outlets, such as a face air outlet, a foot air outlet, and a defrosting air outlet, through which temperature-adjusted air is blown into the vehicle cabin are provided for each of the driver seat and the passenger seat. These air outlets are provided with blowing-mode doors, such as a face door, a foot door, and a defrosting door, that open or close the air outlets. The blowing-mode doors are each generally provided with one rotating shaft and a pair of left and right plate-like doors at the left and right thereof, with a specified gap therebetween to prevent interference with the partition plate, and are integrally formed of a resin material.
Various inventions have been made to install the above-configured blowing-mode doors into the two air channels in the air-conditioner case partitioned by the partition plate in such a manner as to straddle the partition plate. Patent Document 1 discloses one in which the partition plate is mounted in one of the air-conditioner cases separated into the left and right, and the blowing-mode doors are inserted through communication holes formed between the partition plate and the air-conditioner case so that the blowing-mode doors are installed.
Patent Document 2 proposes a structure in which substantially C-shaped bearings are provided at the periphery of the partition plate, the blowing-mode doors are each mounted to the partition plate in advance by fitting a shaft between the pair of left and right plate-like doors of the mode doors into the bearings, with the partition plate put between by the pair of left and right plate-like doors, and this is installed in the separated-structure air-conditioner case. Furthermore, Patent Document 3 proposes a structure in which a peripheral portion corresponding to the plate doors, which extends into the gap between the plate-like doors, is formed along the periphery of the partition plate, and one end of the rotating shaft of the mode door is inserted into a bearing of one of the separate air-conditioner cases, and thereafter, the peripheral portion corresponding to the plate doors is inserted into the gap in the mode door by moving the plate surface of the partition plate parallel to the partition surface of the case to thereby install it into the air-conditioner case.    Patent Document 1: the Publication of Japanese Patent No. 3713780    Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2001-253223    Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2005-1411